‘Why not? We are a nuclear power’
Dmitry Polyanskiy, the Russian deputy ambassador to the UN, has warned that Russia has the means and the right to press the “nuclear button” if provoked by NATO.
Speaking to Sky News‘ US correspondent, the Russian diplomat refused to rule out the possibility of nuclear weapons being brought into play, stating: “If Russia is provoked by Nato, if Russia is attacked by Nato, why not? We are a nuclear power.”
"If Russia is provoked by NATO, I don't know… we are a nuclear power, why not?", says Russian Deputy Ambassador to the UN Dmitry Polyanskiy, when speaking to @marthakelner.
He adds Russia is "not committing war crimes in Ukraine".
Latest: https://t.co/025v7qSKSc pic.twitter.com/t6nsgOoguU
— Sky News (@SkyNews) March 23, 2022
As you can see in the clip taken from the UN in New York, where representatives of the Russian Federation and Vladimir Putin‘s regime discussed the current situation and a potential resolution, Polyanskiy rebuffed claims Putin has committed “war crimes”.
The UN ambassador was not the only one to hint at the possibility of Russia hitting the nuclear button; on Tuesday, CNN reporter Christiane Amanpour took the Russian leader’s spokesperson, Dmitry Peskov, to task over similar suggestions.
In short, he stated that if NATO and other countries pose an “existential threat for our country, then [nuclear weapons] can be used in accordance with our concept [of domestic security]”.
President Putin has raised the threat of using nuclear weapons – and his spokesperson Dmitry Peskov refused to rule out their use, in an interview with me tonight. pic.twitter.com/uxQqncLGYN
— Christiane Amanpour (@amanpour) March 22, 2022
Circling back to Polyanskiy, not only did he stoke fears of a nuclear response but he even went so far as to claim that Ukraine is attacking its own buildings and civilians, remarking: “I’m not, you’re not there. You are looking at videos, many of which are considered to be fake news. You believe one thing, I believe another thing”.
As for NATO intervention and the subsequent possibility of Russia resorting to a nuclear response, military forces have already deployed thermobaric weapons during the conflict: a type of technology that is banned under the Geneva Convention – just one of many reasons Putin’s and soldiers’ actions in Ukraine have been labelled war crimes.
It is not out of the realms of possibility that Russia will continue to take drastic steps in their attempts to claim Ukraine.
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